CCMA Patient Intake & Vitals Practice Questions
Patient Intake & Vitals makes up 5 of every 50 questions on a Tigertest CCMA practice test. Here are 10 of the 20 questions on it, each with the answer and the reason.
Updated by the Tigertest team. Weighted to the NHA CCMA test plan (3.0). Scope of practice varies by state.
1. A medical assistant takes an axillary temperature on an adult patient. Compared with an oral reading, an axillary temperature is typically:
- A.About 3 degrees F higher
- B.About 1 degree F lower
- C.About 1 degree F higher
- D.Exactly the same as an oral reading
Answer: B. Axillary temperatures run about 1 degree F lower than oral, while rectal and tympanic readings run about 1 degree higher. Treating the routes as interchangeable would misclassify a fever.
2. An adult patient with no symptoms has an oral temperature of 99.2 F at a routine visit. The medical assistant should recognize this reading as:
- A.A fever that requires urgent care referral
- B.Hypothermia that requires warming measures
- C.An invalid result needing a rectal recheck
- D.Within the normal adult oral range
Answer: D. Normal adult oral temperature is about 97.6 to 99.6 F, averaging 98.6 F, so 99.2 F is normal. Calling it a fever or ordering a different route is not supported by the reading.
3. When taking a tympanic temperature on an adult, the medical assistant straightens the ear canal by gently pulling the outer ear:
- A.Up and back
- B.Straight forward
- C.Down and forward
- D.Down and back
Answer: A. For adults the pinna is pulled up and back to straighten the canal so the probe aims at the eardrum. Down and back is the technique for children under about 3 years.
4. A medical assistant is measuring the pulse of an 8-month-old infant at a well-child visit. Which site and counting method are correct?
- A.Carotid, counted for 15 seconds
- B.Temporal, counted for 30 seconds and doubled
- C.Apical, counted for one full minute
- D.Radial, counted for 30 seconds
Answer: C. The apical pulse over the heart is used for infants under 1 year and is counted for a full minute because infant rates are fast and variable. The radial pulse is hard to feel in infants, and the carotid is reserved for emergencies.
5. While taking a radial pulse, the medical assistant notices that the rhythm is irregular. The best next step is to:
- A.Document the pulse as regular
- B.Tell the patient they have an arrhythmia
- C.Count the apical pulse for one full minute
- D.Count for 15 seconds, then multiply the count by four
Answer: C. An irregular pulse is counted apically for a full minute and the irregularity is documented and reported. Short counts miss skipped beats, and telling the patient they have an arrhythmia is a diagnosis outside the MA's scope.
6. Which resting pulse rate in an adult falls outside the normal range and should be reported to the provider?
- A.48 beats per minute
- B.78 beats per minute
- C.96 beats per minute
- D.62 beats per minute
Answer: A. The normal adult resting pulse is 60 to 100 beats per minute, so 48 is bradycardia to report. Rates of 62, 78, and 96 are all within the normal range.
7. After counting the radial pulse, the medical assistant keeps fingers on the patient's wrist while counting respirations. What is the main reason?
- A.The radial artery shows the respiratory rate
- B.It keeps the arm level with the heart
- C.It prevents the wrist from moving during the count
- D.Patients may breathe differently if aware
Answer: D. People tend to alter their breathing rate when they know it is being watched, so respirations are counted without telling the patient. The normal adult rate is 12 to 20 breaths per minute; the radial artery does not reflect breathing.
8. A patient with a large upper arm is measured using a standard adult cuff whose bladder is too small. The blood pressure reading will most likely be:
- A.Falsely low
- B.Falsely high
- C.Accurate if taken twice
- D.Unaffected by the cuff size
Answer: B. A bladder that is too small needs extra pressure to compress the artery and reads falsely high; the bladder should encircle about 80% of the arm and be about 40% of its circumference wide. A cuff that is too large reads falsely low.
9. A patient's blood pressure, averaged over two readings, is 134/84 mm Hg. Under the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline, this reading is classified as:
- A.Stage 2 hypertension
- B.Stage 1 hypertension
- C.Normal
- D.Elevated blood pressure
Answer: B. Stage 1 hypertension is a systolic of 130 to 139 or a diastolic of 80 to 89. Elevated is 120 to 129 with a diastolic under 80, and stage 2 starts at 140 or 90.
10. A patient had a left mastectomy with lymph node removal several years ago. When measuring her blood pressure, the medical assistant should:
- A.Alternate arms at each visit
- B.Use the left arm while she lies flat
- C.Use the left arm with a smaller cuff
- D.Use the right arm
Answer: D. Blood pressure is not taken on the side of a mastectomy, an AV fistula, an IV, or an injury because cuff compression can cause harm. Changing the cuff size or position does not remove that risk.
Practice all 20 patient intake & vitals questions, and the rest of the 200-question bank, in the free CCMA training sets. Questions you miss come back until you have mastered them.
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